The Baltimore Ravens and Indianapolis Colts had themselves an old-fashioned joint practice fight in their first session together, and John Harbaugh sure wasn’t surprised.
The two teams will square off in their respective preseason openers, but before kicking off under the lights, the clubs scheduled a pair of joint practices which is where the real work gets done.
Joint practices have become increasingly popular among NFL teams in recent years to the point where the games themselves are secondary to the work that precedes them. That’s partially because fans are more likely to see starters go one-on-one during drills before sitting out most if not all of the actual exhibition games.
Then there’s also the possibility — or likelihood — of tempers flaring between teams that are sick of repping against each other all summer and are more than ready to take out frustrations on a different jersey. At this point, joint practice scraps are one of the surest signs fall is near.
Colts, Ravens Get Feisty in First Joint Practice Together
That was the case for session No. 1 between the Ravens and Colts. Unfortunately, the dust-up came when at a time when media weren’t allowed to record what was going on in front of them, so there’s no video of the tussle, at least not yet.
According to The Athletic, the fight started during a special teams drill. Per the report, it started with some pushing and shoving until Ravens second-year cornerback Nate Wiggins. He took exception to Colts running back Tyler Goodson shoving Baltimore cornerback Keyon Martin, and it was on after that. The Ravens stormed the field, and Wiggins started throwing punches with Goodson
Once the teams were separated, officials sent Wiggins to the locker room, ending his day early.
Why John Harbaugh Wasn’t Surprised by Fight
That the fight started in a punt drill was perhaps the least surprising piece of the puzzle, according to Harbaugh.
“(Colts head coach) Shane (Steichen) and I were talking afterwards — and also (Colts general manager) Chris Ballard, we were both talking — it’s always special teams,” Harbaugh told reporters after the session, per the Ravens’ media site. “It always happens in these practices on special teams. Usually, it’s the gunners (with the) gunner vice drill. You can pretty much chalk it up and predict that it’s going to happen because it’s one of those full-field, really competitive drills.
“It happened, but it should be a learning experience opportunity for our team, too. You don’t have to throw a punch (to) get thrown out of the game. You go back at them, (and) they may throw you out, and the officials threw both of those guys out. So that’s an opportunity for us to learn from.”
Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson made sure to stay far away from the fracas. He wasn’t about to get in trouble — or worse — by getting involved in the chippy chit-chat.
“I’m chilling. I know the cameras (are) on all of us, so I really can’t do too much,” Jackson told reporters. “But I feel like our guys handled their own.”
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